CMCH planning tie-up with pvt hospital to train liver surgeons

Coimbatore: The Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) is planning a tie-up with a private hospital in the city to train its surgeons in liver transplantation.
The government hospital, which had proposed starting the surgeries a few months ago, is working on getting the infrastructure, manpower and expertise to perform them.

While the infrastructure requirements are being met, the hospital authorities are working on giving the surgeons additional training.

The director of medical service had received a proposal from the hospital to start liver transplant surgeries, a procedure that is offered only by private hospitals in the district. “The hospital has new well-equipped intensive care units, ventilators, staff and surgeons, who were trained in Stanley Medical College’s liver transplant unit and liver transplant expert Dr Mohammed Rela,” said a health department official. “But they need an exclusive intensive care unit for liver transplant patients, because they are prone to infections and have to allot a set of staff exclusively to monitor the liver ICU round-the-clock,” he told TOI.

“While sending our doctors to further assist in liver transplant surgeries in a specific hospital is an option, getting their doctors to operate on the first few GH patients is another option. Many private hospitals do both,” he said. “Liver transplant surgeries include performing anastomosis of blood vessels, which is a skill the doctors could train themselves more in.”

The official said that they would inspect the hospital once CMCH authorities informed the government that they were ready to perform the surgery.

The procedure costs Rs 20 to Rs 30lakh in private hospitals, including the required diagnosis, surgeries and medication, but is covered by the Chief Ministers Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme.